Dawood Ibrahim's alleged aide Khalil Ahmed granted bail

Khalil Ahmed, an alleged aide of fugitive underworld don Dawood Ibrahim, has been granted bail by a Delhi court in a 2009 case of his alleged bid to extort money from a businessman.

Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Vinod Yadav granted bail to Khalil, considering that substantial evidence against him has already been recorded. The court released him on bail on a personal bond of Rs 25,000.

The CMM also noted that Khalil had already been absolved of Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act charges by a sessions court on November 16 last year and the same order was upheld by the Delhi high court.

"Considering the facts and circumstances of the case in totality, particularly the fact that accused has been in judicial custody for more than three and half years, substantial evidence in the matter has already been recorded and further fact that the high court has been pleased to confirm order of the additional sessions judge whereby charges under MCOCA were not made out against the accused, I deem it to be a fit case for grant of bail," the CMM said.

The prosecution vehemently opposed his bail plea, saying that he is a bad character of the area of Jamia Nagar and the state wants to file a Special Leave Petition against the order of the high court absolving him of MCOCA charges.

Businessman Qmar Ahmed had alleged that on February 16, 2009, when he was in his shop with his partner, two persons came and handed over a mobile phone to him, forcing him to speak to Khalil. Khalil allegedly demanded Rs 10 lakh as extortion money and threatened to kill him and his family if his demand was not met.

Khalil was arrested by the Delhi police on February 26, 2009 and provisions of MCOCA were invoked against him for running an organised crime syndicate. But he was absolved of the charge by the sessions court.

The police had accused him of being involved in 34 cases of extortion, dacoity, kidnapping, murder, intimidation and attempt to murder from 1985 to 2009.